Electron cyclotron resonance discharge enhancement in a cusped field thruster

Electron cyclotron resonance is induced to enhance the discharging performance of a cusped field thruster, by feeding microwave into the channel. Due to a critical combination of ECR discharge and DC discharge, propellant utilization is significantly improved, with varying degrees of impact on other parameters. The DC mode, the ECR mode and the combined mode are achieved and analyzed respectively. A Faraday probe and a retarding potential analyzer are employed to diagnose the plume plasma, and approximate calculated thrust is given. In addition, high frequency electric field simulation is carried out to indicate the microwave feeding process in different mass flow rate conditions, making use of a Particle-In-Cell simulation result. The result shows that the ECR enhancement is particularly effective in low mass flow conditions, and the special plasma distribution in the cusped magnetic field leads to the propellant utilization trend in the combined mode.